New Transportation Study Says Iowa Has Third Most ‘Structurally Deficient’ Bridges

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A new study[1] ranks Iowa 3rd in the nation by measure of structurally deficient bridges. The organization Transportation for America, which works to promote improving the nation’s transportation infrastructure, found 21.7% of Iowa’s bridges to be structurally deficient.

Structurally deficient does not mean bridges are unsafe, they are inspected annually. That classification is reached when one of a bridge’s three main components is rated at a 4 or less in a 9 point scale.

Twenty-nine percent of Marion County’s 235 bridges are structurally deficient, ranking the county 27th of 99. Adams County in southwest Iowa has the largest percentage of deficent bridges at 46, Clinton County in the eastern part of the state leads the way with just 3.7%

Nationally, Pennsylvania has the highest percentage of deficient bridges at 26.5%. Nevada’s bridges are in the best shape, only 39 of that state’s bridges are structurally deficient, 2.2% of the total. The bridges of Madison County are 31.7% deficient.